An inside-out computer

We’ve seen quite a range of computer modifications come into our inbox as part of theRig of the Month series, but we haven’t had many as well thought out as Stuart “noobas4urus” Johanson’s Project PCB. This month’s Rig of the Month is lovingly themed after the very PCBs that give it life. Stuart settled on a metallic green fleck paintjob with white accents alongside actual circuit boards that really complete the look.

Size really doesn’t matter

Size doesn’t matter. At least that’s what Falcon Northwest is saying with its latest entry into the micro-tower war, the Tiki, which offers full-size tower performance in a teeny, tiny case.

In case you don’t know, the micro-tower war is the place to be right now. Traditionally, slim micro-towers (as opposed to the typical Shuttle-style shoe-box form factors) have been bereft of performance. That all changed earlier this year when Alienware hit the market with its X51 (reviewed in May). Just bigger than a typical first-generation console, the X51’s innovation was a desktop-class GPU and CPU for a decent price. While groundbreaking, the X51 made some compromises, such as forcing you to choose between a hard drive or SSD, and offering only midrange GPU options (currently) and no ability to overclock.

Given its superb performance, the Tiki deserves to be placed on a pedestal—luckily, it comes with one.